6 Weeks Into My Tinnitus

[Mo_Mo]

Hello Everyone
I have had my tinnitus for the past 6 weeks,
It all started when I had a cold for 2 weeks, A Dr prescribed clarinase for me to take twice a day once in the morning and once at night,

the clarinase made me nauseous, Dizzy and caused me insomnia, I was sleeping 4-5 Hours per day
in addition I had a very busy schedule at work and I am also doing my post graduate part time. hence I did not have a lot of time to rest. (7am-10pm work+studying everyday including weekends)

on the 5th day of taking clarinase at around 2am, I suddenly felt a hissing noise in my left ears, which was the tinnitus. (During the course of my 2 weeks of having cold, I had gotten tinnitus twice once for 5 minutes and once for an hour), hence I thought it was temporarily tinnitus, but it has been 6 weeks and it has not stopped yet. in addition to the tinnitus, I had a very bad dry mouth for 2-3 days, I felt dizzy (most probably due to the sleepless nights I had when the tinnitus started)

I have visited 7 ENT specialists in two countries in the past 6 weeks, I have done 2 Audio grams (upto 8Khz), 2 CT Scans, an MRI and I have done a full blood test twice in addition to an ultrasound to my abdomens and organs.

All the tests came back with no issues except my ALT blood which was a little bit higher than average. I did a hepatitis test and it turned out to be negative.

I have been prescribed Beta Serc 16mg which I am taking 3 times a day
I had a course of steroids (did not help since I took it last week ie 5 weeks after getting the tinnitus)
I am also taking Neurobion tablets
I am also taking Centrum tablets which is a mixture of different tablets.

the only change I have felt in the past 6 weeks is that my T has shifted from the 8Khz to a higher frequency. in addition I am seeing some eye floaters in my left eye (same side as my T).

I also had a stiff neck/back couple of time but I visited a physiotherapist who sorted that out, she said that I did not seem to have TMJ symptoms.

The person who did my last audiogram said that my hearing and ear pressure was perfect and he does not think the T is related to the ears.

hence does any one have any suggestions on what I should do next?
should I start seeing a neurologist? or continue with an ENT specialist?

the MRI also stated that everything seemed to be normal. but the tinnitus has be continues for the past 6 weeks.

All of the Dr's I meet said the same thing "Oh you only have T for few weeks, it is still too early give it couple of months"

 

[billie48]

Welcome to the board Mo_Mo. It seems your T may be related to the meds you took for the cold but T is so unpredictable that it can come from many reasons. Stress is one such factor too. My T hit me a few years back and like you it hit in the middle of the night when I woke up with this crazy scream in my ears. It is an ultra high pitch dog whistle and resonates in my whole head. Never had I been exposed to such an alien and terrifying sensation of of T, a sound 10 times the pitch of a dentist drill. When it didn't go away and went 7/24 and beyond, I was in a mess mentally and physically. Worse I also develop severe hyperacusis which turned all normal sounds glassy and piercingly hurtful to my ears. I had to wear ear plugs all the time but the plugs blocked off all outside sounds making the T shrill so unbearably dominant. I was stuck between two conflicting devils. Chose this I am dead, choose that I am also dead. LOL. I can laugh at this now but not then. Because T & H also opened the flood gate of hell of relentless anxiety and panic attacks with their own set of horrible sensations. I had to depend on meds to survive those darkest days. I thought I would never get better, but here I am today living an enjoyable and normal life.

So don't worry and panic too much and hopefully you get some sleep. The dry throats can be because you are breathing through the throats when the sinus congestion blocks the nose. Also, if you have sleep apnea (which I have), sometimes, I breathe with my mouth causing very dry throats.

I have hearing loss in the high frequency. Hence my high pitch T and it is not going away. But my brain has hardened to this ringing and I don't give a dime to it any more. As I am typing it is ringing very loud and ultra high pitch. But in a moment of doing other things, the brain would fade it out, because it is not being considered a threat, much like when we take a flight and deep into a movie, we seldom hear the all encompassing jet noise which we don't consider a threat. So it is important to train yourself to think 'T is harmless' everyday. You should read the success stories to learn some insights how the posters change from treating T a catastrophe to a harmless (perhaps annoying at times) sound.

One positive thing about your case is that you don't have hearing loss. Also your T being so new it may just fade or disappear. It is important to maintain a positive attitude, learn some wisdom and strategies here, and most importantly give it time. The body is in a shock and trauma state when the limbic nerve system is dominant and you function in the primitive fight or flight mode. The body needs time to absorb in the new, strange condition of T. Do a lot of relaxation exercises like leisure walk, jogging, hiking, mindfulness meditation (search youtube to see how it is done). Given time, the normal nerve can return and you will be able to function much better, and hopefully on your way to habituation. Take care & God bless your recovery.

 

[Mo_Mo]

Many thanks for these encouraging words billie48